O.J. Simpson’s lawyers are asking the Nevada Supreme Court to toss out the former football star’s conviction, saying that the judge who slapped him with what amounts to a life sentence was prejudiced and made several improper rulings during last year’s trial. In their 47-page appeal, Simpson’s attorneys argue that Clark County, Nev., District Judge Jackie Glass exercised a “cumulative error that was so egregious and prejudicial that the defense could not get a fair trial.” Read more.

Jury selection begins in the football legend’s second major criminal trial

For the second time, a criminal jury is being assembled to determine the fate of ex-football star O.J. Simpson. The Heisman Trophy-winner faces possible prison in connection with his alleged robbery of two memorabilia collectors who he said stole valuables connected with his sports career. Simpson is also charged with kidnapping in the year-old incident at a Las Vegas hotel, where he and several men allegedly barged into the collectors’ room, reportedly held them against their will and seized thousands of dollars in souvenirs. Jury selection in the case is expected to take about a week. Simpson’s co-defendant C.J. Stewart is the only other remaining suspect to face trial in the episode after several others struck pleas and agreed to testify against Simpson. Judge Jackie Glass on Monday rejected a request by Simpson’s lawyers to ask potential jurors if they considered Simpson a murderer, despite his acquittal in the death of his wife and her friend in 1994.

A bloody man jumped from a speeding car and into his truck.
An Atlanta man was driving his truck down the freeway when a 25-year-old kidnapping victim, bound with extension cords, leapt from speeding vehicle in front of him and bumped along the road in front of him like a bloodied rag doll before jumping up and hopping in the back of his truck. “It was certainly a very harrowing experience,” Bruce Hembree, 37, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I was terrified. He was obviously in great duress because he came out of a car at highway speed, about 70 miles per hour.” Humbree said that the incident, along a stretch of I-285 near Martin Luther King Drive, brought traffic to a halt. “He was rolling through the middle of my lane, looking like he was a rag doll,” Hembree said. “He was leaving bits and pieces of clothing and skin as he rolled.” He said he slowed down to keep from hitting the victim, Deshon Blackmon, whose hands were tied with the cord. Blackmon then jumped up and into his truck and started banging on the window “like it was a Humvee and we were in a firefight or something,” he told the Journal-Constitution. “Go! Go! Go!” Blackmon screamed, saying that the kidnappers had his ID and were going to kill his mother. But Hembree remained still, afraid of what they might do. “And they were all looking at that car,” he said. But the car drove off, and Hembree said he drove to the next exit and pulled over so Blackmon, who was bleeding profusely, could call 911, the newspaper reported. Two of the victim’s friends told police that the kidnapping was drug-related.

Earthquake rumbles in Peru
Early Tuesday morning, a 6.0-magnitude earthquake shook southern Peru, reports Reuters. While quakes of that magnitude are able to cause great damage, the nation’s police and civil defense agency said there were no reported injuries or damage. The quake’s epicenter was in an unpopulated area, said the district chief of Peru’s civil defense agency. Still, many residents of Arequipa, ran out into the streets and refused to return to their homes for fear they would collapse in an aftershock. The nation’s third largest copper mine also reported there was no damage as a result of the quake. “We have had no impact, no injuries, everything is fine,” a spokeswoman said.

Gunmen snatched the brother of a Nigerian soccer player
The gunman of younger brother of Nigerian soccer star Joseph Yobo was abducted by gunman last weekend as he was coming back from a party, reports the BBC. No one has made a ransom yet, and no militant group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping, said Rivers State police spokeswoman Rita Inoma-Abbey. Yobo plays for Nigeria’s national team and also played in the English Premier League last season. Kidnapping and ransoms are not unusual in Nigeria, the highest oil producer in the continent of Africa. And militants are constantly fighting to get a piece of the nation’s oil profits. Just in the past two years, attacks against the nation’s oil industry has cut oil output by almost 25 percent, which has helped crude prices skyrocket worldwide. After a ransom has been paid, the kidnappings usually end without anyone getting hurt.

Zimbabwean president gets luke-warm welcome
Robert Mugabe, fresh from being declared the winner in Zimbabwe’s controversial presidential runoff election, received a mixed welcome Monday as he faced other African leaders at a meeting in Egypt. The elections in Zimbabwe were widely criticized because of widespread violence ahead of the runoff, accusations of voter intimidation and several arrests of opposition party candidates. At the African Union (AU) meeting in Egypt, Mugabe reportedly received a warm welcome from some, reports CNN. “He was hugging everyone, pretty much everyone he could get close to,” one of the delegates told to the AP. But he also faced sharp criticism from AU elders. The elections “occurred under the cloud of targeted political violence, precipitating the withdrawal of one of the two candidates. The African election observers left no doubt: The elections were neither free nor fair,” the Elders said in a statement. The leaders, as a whole, are divided on how to deal with the situation. Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga (himself involved in an election controversy before reaching a power sharing deal) has openly blasted Mugabe, saying the ruler of 28 years shouldn’t be recognized as Zimbabwe’s official leader. Mugabe responded to criticism by saying that some leaders should be weary of throwing stones. “Some African countries have done worse things,” he said. The president of neighboring South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, believes Mugabe and opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai should come together and form a coalition government. And the longtime Zimbabwe leader recently announced he’d be open to talking to the opposition. “It is my hope that sooner rather than later we shall, as diverse political parties, hold consultations towards such serious dialogue [that] will minimize our differences and enhance the areas of unity and cooperation between us,” he said. Tsvangirai is optimistic for a solution because he feels Mugabe has no other option. “As far as we are concerned, we are nearer a solution than we have ever been because where does he go from here? He cannot solve the economic problem, he cannot solve the 8 million-percent inflation by continuing to be in this intransigent mood,” Tsvangirai said.

Kidnapped aid workers are released in Somalia
The two aid workers kidnapped this weekend in Somalia were released hours after being captured, reports CNN. The two workers, one Swedish, the other Danish, were taken by militants from the Islamist Courts Union. The members of the Swedish Rescue Services Agency (SRSA) were not physically harmed, according to a spokeswoman from their organization. “They are all right physically. They are a bit shocked,” she said. The charity group was in Somalia teaching citizens about the risks of landmines as requested by the United Nations, said their director of international operations, Kiell Larson. They, along with others on their team, will leave the nation, says the SRSA spokeswoman.